Lorelei
by Tsubaki394
Summary: Granny who loved to tell the stories inspired them to become pirates, opening their arms and smiling wide at the adventure. What they didn't know though, was that the stories would have greatest influence on their life than they should have. And not only theirs. / AU, T for language and suggestive themes, main characters will appear a little later.
1. Prologue - Beloved granny

_Thanks for beta-ing it for me, Stephy :)_

_Dedicated to Cherry, who reminded me of this idea (unknowingly, but still :P)_

* * *

Sky was slowly turning peachy pink outside, and the warm light of setting sun filled big common-room in the orphanage, as children slowly stopped screaming and running around, pulling each other hair and do this thing that they oddly considered fun. Kids surrounded old lady, who just wobbled into the room, sat in rocking chair and covered herself in blankets. She was their favourite storyteller - she knew every single legend that existed.

"Granny Mavis, tell us about pirates today!" Black haired boy cheered. Blonde girl, looking about seven years old, pouted.

"We heard about pirates yesterday! Tell us about maidens!"

"Pirates!"

"Maidens!"

Old woman chuckled. She loved those children, they were like her own grandchildren. Although she didn't have any of her own, those orphans in the town of Acalypha treated her like family.

"Layla, Macau, don't argue. You're making granny tired." A Boy older than others, in fact he looked as if he was going to be leaving the orphanage soon.

"Thank you, Makarov. You know, children, there was a maiden once..." she began her story. Boys whined, not wanting to hear about some boring girls, but they quickly changed their minds. "Her name was Lorelei. She was very beautiful, and broke many hearts. But finally she did fall in love. He was young boy, who was sailing with pirates."

Now, it got interesting for everyone, and kids gathered closer, to hear granny better, as she continued.

"Unfortunately for Lorelei, the boy - even if he liked her - left her with broken heart when he left with his crew. She cried, cursing pirates for taking her love away from her. It evolved to hate, eventually, and she began to blame them for every bad thing. Soon, broken-hearted, she threw herself off the cliff, not wanting to live without this boy."

"NOOOOOOOOO! IT CAN'T BE!" blonde girl interrupted, tears filling her eyes. Mavis smiled at her.

"Don't cry, my child. When Lorelei died, the mighty Sea King, who hated pirates for dirtying his beautiful castle with blood and wrecks of the ship, made a deal with her. He offered her life as a beautiful mermaid who controlled the water. In exchange, he made her promise that she would lure and drown every pirate ship she could, and she gladly agreed to this, thinking that it will soothe her pain."

"NOOOOO, SHE'S AWFUL!" This time, it was the boy who couldn't resist.

"Is she?" Mavis smiled again. "I leave this for you to decide. But try thinking what would you do, if you were in her place, sweet pea. And now, my children, I will go to sleep, as I am very tired."

"Good night, granny~" kids said in unison, when Makarov helped her stand up and go to her room.

Children crawled into their rooms and beds, all thinking about the story, with different thoughts on the legend - ones admiring Lorelei, others hating her deeply. Yet, every single one of them smiled before falling asleep.

Mavis sure was the greatest storyteller.

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**_Hope you liked it. R&R :)_**


	2. 1- Love and lucky and a bit of ale

_I'll never again do something this suggestive, I swear. I just had to put Lucy in somehow..._

_Oh god that sounds bad. XD_

_For Cherry and Bluey! Thanks for your support. And, Stephy, thank you for beta-ing, as always. I love you all guys._

_Theme song for the chapter - **Fifteen men on the dead's man chest**, of course, as it had started it all._

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The "Love and Lucky" bar in Acalypha was louder than usual, as the pirate ship docked in the haven today. Who would've known that there would actually be a city where pirates were so welcome? Well, now the citizens of Acalypha did.

It all started with the orphanage. There was a granny some time ago, who inspired the children with amazing stories about pirates, maidens, mermaids and other sea creatures. The children loved those stories.

But granny was really old - they didn't even know how old she exactly was - so she died eventually. She had a beautiful funeral, and the kids were very sad.

One of them, who actually left orphanage some time before, wanted to cheer them up. So he came up with an idea - idea of sailing and telling their granny new stories every time they went back. And children were delighted.

This kid was named Makarov Dreyar, and was now actually one of the most famous pirates around the globe, captain of Fairy Tail pirates. His adventures were just as famous as himself. You wouldn't tell he was so young. He looked at least fifty, while being twenty five. It was all because of his bad luck. When he first joined a crew as a cabin boy, the ship fell in a weird storm. They landed on a strange island, and they spent over twenty four years in there, lured by the beautiful girls that lived in there - which later came out to be mermaids in disguise in most part, and actual human woman, kidnapped by those mermaids in lesser. He had a son then, and when they had finally managed to break out, he took Ivan with him - only to find out that the time flow on that island has changed, and they were absent from the world for like, two weeks. When he returned to Acalypha, only the kids recognized him. Some of them decided to join Makarov in his further adventures, which never ended. That gave birth to the Fairy Tail crew (the name was in the honour of Mavis, because she always asked them if fairies do really have the tails, and no one could answer).

But now, it wasn't Makarov's crew who returned. It actually was the second crew from the orphanage, Starry King's Pirates. You could ask about why they split and weren't travelling together, and the answer was really simple - the captain of the second crew was the cause. To be exact, Layla Star, blonde girl who had always argued with Macau Conbolt, the lieutenant in Fairy Tail. No one wanted to see them near each other, not mentioning them spending time on ONE ship, for MONTHS. This would be unbearable and the crew will soon be left with only the two and Makarov and Wakaba, who were miraculously able to ignore always-arguing pair. Still, awkwardly enough for pirates, one crew was friends with another (as long as Layla and Macau weren't in the same room, that is).

_Fifteen men on a dead man's chest_  
_Yo ho ho and a bottle of rum_  
_Drink and the devil had done for the rest_  
_Yo ho ho and a bottle of rum!_

A pretty barmaid squealed as she was pulled onto one of the pirates lap. The others loudly sang, when he clapped her butt.

The blonde bartender sighed, calling them to stop, even though he knew it wouldn't really work. A young woman sitting in front of him, with her mug empty and cheeks slightly flushed, laughed loud.

"Sorry for them, they haven't seen woman's ass in few months. HEY, IDIOTS, DON'T MAKE POOR GIRL EMBARASSED OR YOU'LL BE DAMNED!"

The guy instantly let go of barmaid, who served rest of the drinks.

"Really, they listen to you, and won't listen to me? You're a thing, missy." Man laughed at her, when she smiled mischievously.

"You're new here, aren't you? I didn't see you last time I was here." He nodded, getting her mug of ale. "I'm their fuckin' captain, you moron." Her tone changed to serious one, and he looked at her, unimpressed. Really, every single one of them could claim to be their captain.

"And why should I believe you? You might be as well their whore who can easily tell which of them has smaller one and embarrass every single one" he shrugged, wiping glass.

All the sounds were replaced by silence in one second, as everyone stared at him in disbelief. Did he really just call Layla Star a whore?

He gulped, noticing his situation. Okay, he could die, he just offended a whole bunch of pirates, and their possible captain, judging from reactions.

The girl checked him out, her intense gaze piercing him through. Everyone watched her quietly, some even forgetting to breathe and drink. Bartender began to feel very, very uncomfortable, with her sight tracing every little detail on his face and body, and rest of the pirates, slowly pulling their swords out, waiting for her reaction...  
Which, surprisingly for all of them, was a burst of loud, uncontrolled laughter.

"You've got some balls, to actually call me a whore." She smirked mischievously at him. "Didn't I tell you they haven't seen woman's butt in ages? Well, months actually, but still, point remains the same. You're in a trouble, moron." Bartender observed their surroundings, and thought that she indeed was the captain on their ship. Otherwise they wouldn't be preparing their swords to chop off his head, wouldn't they?

The woman caught his attention again pretty quickly, though, slamming the already empty mug on the counter. (Didn't he just fill it like a minute ago, before he offended her?)

"But you know what? I like you, even though you've got smaller one than any other guy in here."

A drunken pirate laughed at her comment, hiccupped, and then began to sing again.

_Yo ho ho and a bottle of rum!_

The rest joined him quickly, when they noticed lack of actual danger upon them.

"By the way, name's Layla." The blonde smirked at him again, knowing she hit his weak spot by the look on his face. It was some kind of ultimate hit on every man's pride, and she learned that long time ago. He quickly reflected himself, though. He didn't want to lose to that missy, did he? So, he smirked at her, just like she just smirked at him.

"Jude. And you know... why don't you find out yourself who's the biggest? Me, or them?"

Blonde woman raised a brow. So that's how he wanted to play?

"Probably me, moron." He chuckled, refilling her mug.

"Care to show me, or you're too afraid to lose, missy?" Layla looked at him. He caught her interest even before, and he kinda turned her on with those comments. So, she grinned at him.

She was a pirate, and was doing what she wanted to do. And tonight, she wanted this cocky bartender to yell.

"You better get yourself a room, cause I'm feeling loud today~" She drank the ale in one swig, just to join her crew after few seconds. Jude's eyes followed her, as she sat in one of the sailors lap, and began to sing.

What was weird, her voice, even if she was drunk already, sounded like an angel's.

_Fifteen men of the whole ship's list_  
_Yo ho ho and a bottle of rum!_  
_Dead and be damned and the rest gone whist!_  
_Yo ho ho and a bottle of rum!_  
_The skipper lay with his nob in gore_  
_Where the scullion's axe his cheek had shore_  
_And the scullion he was stabbed times four_  
_And there they lay, and the soggy skies_  
_Dripped down in up-staring eyes_  
_In murk sunset and foul sunrise_  
_Yo ho ho and a bottle of rum!_

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**_Hope you enjoyed it! R&R :)_**

**_[edit] omg i uploaded wrong version, with Stephy's comments instead of mine fixes, i'm feeling dumb now =3='_**


	3. 2 - What to do with a drunken pirate?

_._

_As always thank You for beta-ing, Stephy!_

_Theme song for the chapter - __**Drunken Sailor**__ (Irish Rovers cover is amazing, check it out! XD)_

_It'll not be a long time and we'll get to the main story and characters! :3_

_Enjoy! :)_

* * *

Layla yawned and stretched, as the sunlight has danced on her nose. She wasn't a heavy sleeper, so it was enough to wake her up.

It was good for a captain, because no one ever succeeded in surprising her in her sleep. And some had tried to do it, believe it or not. Only once in their lifespan, though.

She lifted blonde man's arm from her waist and got up. Quietly whistling The Drunken Sailor's melody, she pulled on her shirt, pants, and tied her corset over it. Her hair was in mess, so she ran her fingers through it few times, not wanting to use the brush that was lying on the dressing table. She knew well that there were probably lice all over it, as it often was in the pubs. And she hated lice. So, she made a messy bun out of her golden locks, hiding it in her hairnet. The man groaned, as she opened the squeaky door, waking him up. Layla giggled, turning her head to him for the last time this morning.

"I guess I'll have to take back what I said yesterday, Jude Heartfilia. You might not have the smallest one in there."

He looked at her, half-sleeping, and yawned.

"And you surely are a thing, Layla Star..." he was mumbling, but she heard him well anyways. His head hit the pillow, and the door squeaked again as she left the room.

When she headed downstairs, she looked at her wasted crew, laying all around the pub. She sighed, watching as Caprico, her lieutentant, was sleeping while still sitting by the table, his head laying on it, drool making its path on his beard. Others preferred the comfy floor - and women boobs and asses.

Blonde woman kicked a man who captured one of the girls. She somehow managed to fall asleep, but the fear was still painted on her face. Layla woke her up delicately, and asked for help with waking rest of girls tangled in her crew members' arms. Stench of half-digested alcohol and vomit itched her nose more than ever, but she brushed it off. It probably was because of the fact that she drank too much ale herself last night.

When the girls were all up, and the pirates still snored, Layla excused them for few minutes, but asked to prepare big amount of buckets with water for some reason, known only to herself.

She strolled trough the alleys that were only slowly waking up. Few kids raced with buckets, to get the water to their homes - and she noticed some of them were familiar.

"Layla! Hello!" she heard a boy scream, and she chuckled, waving at him. He was one of the orphans, younger than herself, she believed his name was Tono.

"Hey there!" She answered with warm smile. She was always welcome at the orphanage, but this wasn't her goal right now. In fact she had just reached it.

And so she kneeled in front of the beautiful marble grave that she and Makarov had funded not so long ago.

"Hello, granny. I missed you! I've got few things to tell you, you know?" smile graced her lips while she touched cold stone, as if it was the gentle hand that used to ruffle her hair. "Those idiots are sleeping in the pub, and I'm gonna wake them up with verve. I just wanted to see you first. You know, when we left last time, we were lured by some mermaids. Fortunately, I managed to deaden their singing before it was too late, but my stupid crew almost got us there. To think I could end up like Makarov... I'd look horrible if I was to grow old!" she stated with disgust, but smiled again after few seconds. "Then we fought some assholes, as always, and managed to gather some gold from them. But they were attacking us first, don't worry, we're still innocent!" she assured, as if Mavis was to scold her.

"Are we..? Granny?"

Her voice weakened, as her eyes fogged up with tears, that she had immediately blinked away. She sometimes wondered, if what they were doing made them bad people. It was true that her crew didn't attack anyone, and focused more on adventures. But they were more and more struggling to fight every time they saw another pirate flag... and she was, too. That horrified her.

Layla shook her head, and smiled again, though not as brightly as before.

"Oh, it'll get late, and I don't want those idiots to wake up on their own, granny. They'll probably come to see you, too, but we're departing tonight. I'll come to tell you my adventures next time! I miss your stories." She stood up, smiling, but inside, she felt like crying. She refused to cry, though. There still was something she needed to do.

She didn't want those idiots to wake up on their own, did she?

So, she hurried back, and the girls already prepared what she asked. She took one of the buckets, showing barmaids to do the same. The ice cold water landed at her crew, and the captain girl began yelling.

"WAKE UP, YOU ASSHOLES, WE'RE UNDER ATTACK!"

It wasn't even two seconds before all of them stood at attention, saluting. She and the girls burst out laughing. Her subordinates slowly began understanding what she did, when blonde wiped tears of joy from her eyes. "Now, clean this up, you don't want these cuties to dirty their hands with your vomit, don't you?! And move your asses, we're departing in the evening, you all need to gather your supplies!" she commanded, and even if they were frustrated with their captain, they didn't say a word of objection.

Scorpio, knowing what will make them work better, began singing again.

_What will we do with a drunken sailor?_  
_What will we do with a drunken sailor?_  
_What will we do with a drunken sailor?_  
_Early in the morning_

When he finished first verse, the rest burst out with hoarse voices.

_Way hay and up she rises_  
_Way hay and up she rises_  
_Way hay and up she rises_  
_Early in the morning_

The blonde chuckled and flashed a grin at the owner, who just stepped downstairs from his room, woken up by all the noise she had made. "Sorry for them, they'll clean this place up. Here, for your yesterday's services, I hope it'll be enough." She threw a bag that jingled in the air, and the fatty caught it. He nodded his head, smiling.

"It's always pleasure to play your host, Layla." She bowed her head, not wanting to point out the fact that he liked her money, not her. Screw the pubs owners was her motto, she didn't know what in the world could happen next time they'd be here if she offended him now. The cause of poison in their rum didn't really sound all that great, did it?

She went out of bar after telling Caprico something under her breath and flashing a look at the crew. The doors shut after her the exact same moment the other blonde person entered the pub, going down the stairs.

Jude found himself in the center of the mess that the girl caused not so long ago. Her golden hair was not seen, though. One of her men looked at bartender and smirked, but said nothing. Jude shrugged it off, and stood behind the bar, not wanting to be yelled at by the owner as he did last night.

The ruckus quieted slowly, as the pirates finally managed to clean the floor and tables and left the place, going somewhere he didn't know. The owner went to buy the ale from merchants on the market (no wonder why, as all of it went out yesterday), and the barmaids went to patch themselves up. So, Jude was left alone, with no customers at all, wiping the bar while thinking.

His mind drifted to the woman. He wondered where she was right now, as the last time he's seen her was when she left the room. Of course he heard her yelling, but it seemed that she left.

She was interesting. He never saw a girl like her before, and he had met a lot of them. She was doing and getting what she wanted, acting like there were only today for her to live. She was loud and cheerful, and definitely passionate. She reminded him of the sun.

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_Basically, anyone can throw me a shantie about departing? Need that desperately to write next chapter. By the way, be as nice and check the poll in my profile, I'll be grateful, as I need your opinion. XD_

_R&R!_


	4. 3-You shall not trust men with your ship

_._

_I'm very sorry for the delay - unfortunately I had no idea for the theme song at first, and when I found it, I fell a bit sick, so it was hard on me. Beta-reader had more work to do with this one, too... So yeah, basically, I just got my fixes and applied them and am immediately publishing this long cutie._

_We're getting to the main plot slowly ~_

_Thank you Stephy for beta-ing once again. :3_

_Song themes - first is **Spanish Ladies** (from Assasin's Creed - Black Flag), and the second - **My Jolly Sailor Bold**, mermaid's song from Pirates of the __Caribbean: __On Stranger Tides_

_____Enjoy the chapter! _

* * *

_Farewell and adieu to you, Spanish Ladies,_

_Farewell and adieu to you, ladies of Spain;_

_For we've received orders for to sail for old England_

_And we may never see you fair ladies again._

The pirates tensed ropes while singing the song loudly. Their time here was up; they needed to leave Acalypha once again, so they sung rhythmically, while preparing to depart. Layla Heart yelled commands once in a while, rest of time strolling along the deck with Caprico, checking if everything was alright.

They managed to refill their supplies (like every time they've been here - people in the town loved them; two pirate crews was the thing that made this place prosperous - tourists were coming and going, just to see the famous orphanage, granny's grave, and - with a bit of luck - one of the crews itself.) Now, they didn't usually came to any town and party like that - they had few places to gather new supplies, cure their hurt ones, or even sit in some dirty pub, but they always were observed by the guards and couldn't even scream, not to be arrested. They weren't like those crews whose members portraits hung in every city, with few zeroes behind the first digit in their rewards, so they were untouchable if they didn't cause any ruckus, but still, the guards didn't need much reasons to pack them to jail. This was different though; this was their hometown, and the guards would be torn to pieces by the people if they tried to pick a fight with either Starry King, or Fairy Tail pirates. Not that the pirates did something bad - they only partied. A bit.

Layla observed as her crew attached the ropes, feeling nervous.

_We will rant and we'll roar like true British sailors,_

_We'll rant and we'll roar all on the salt seas_

_Until we strike soundings in the channel of old England;_

_From Ushant to Scilly is thirty-five leagues._

The song continued, and Layla felt more and more uneasy. Why though? She didn't know herself. She did everything she wanted in here already, and yet she felt like it was really bad idea to depart now. She bit her lip, looking at the crowd – people always lined up and listened to their songs, watched their preparations, and waved them goodbye. Often they threw some gifts on the deck – although their magazines were full – like kids giving them chocolate, their favourite baker throwing some sweet buns for the day, or little girls offering the captain flowers. She loved children and was delighted every time they got her something.

Some squeal caught her attention, and as she looked through the crowd, little girl waved her, sitting on the shoulders of some man. She was one of the orphans, she noticed; Cana if she remembered correctly. Girl threw her a wreath, and just as Layla caught it, she squealed in delight. Blonde woman smiled at the cute girl, and put it on her head, mouthing "Thank you", as she didn't want to disturb the song. Town people loved their singing.

_We hove our ship to with the wind from sou'west, boys_

_We hove our ship to, deep soundings to take;_

_'Twas forty-five fathoms,with a white sandy bottom,_

_So we squared our main yard and up channel did steer_

She quickly turned her head away, embarrassed, just as she saw who was holding the girl. Blonde man chuckled, when she blushed a bit; no one else seemed to notice. He threw a single white rose to the deck, and Layla picked it up, but still, didn't look at him at all.

She glanced at the sails and then at her lieutenant, who nodded.

"OKAY, BOYS! LET'S GET THIS GIRL MOVING, THE ADVENTURE AWAITS!" she yelled at her boys, as always referring to their ship as "her" (What? She needed some lady's company. She liked to complain to it at the crew a bit... okay she did it most of the time).

"AYE, AYE, CAPTAIN!" from every single one of them was a response to her order.

"AWAIT OUR RETURN, ACALYPHA!" she turned around, and waved at the people, who began to cheer, wave, and scream their goodbyes. The anchor rose, and the rovers began their work at loud "ONE, TWO! ONE, TWO!" and the sound of drum.  
The boat slowly began to move, and soon the wind helped the sailors, being too light to carry the boat by the shore. The song began to fade at the town of Acalypha, as the pirate ship faded in the light of setting sun. Layla didn't look back; if she did, she knew she might've jump off the ship and stayed there forever, and she was afraid of that.

_We will rant and we'll roar like true British sailors,_

_We'll rant and we'll roar all on the salt seas_

_Until we strike soundings in the channel of old England;_

_From Ushant to Scilly is thirty-five leagues._

_Now let ev'ry man drink off his full bumper,_

_And let ev'ry man drink off his full glass;_

_We'll drink and be jolly and drown melancholy,_

_And here's to the health of each true-hearted lass_

_We will rant and we'll roar like true British sailors,_

_We'll rant and we'll roar all on the salt seas_

_Until we strike soundings in the channel of old England;_

_From Ushant to Scilly is thirty-five leagues..._

* * *

_BLEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEERGH._

Caprico looked at his captain, worried.

Layla Star was definitely not okay.

Since they departed from Acalypha two months ago, she's been acting weird – for example, she'd randomly scream at deck hands who weren't cleaning the deck now... few minutes after they did it perfectly. Or she'd yell at the crew at the dinner (she'd never interrupt their meal before) and get foggy eyes at random jokes. She grew paler, her eyes and hair lost their shine, and she seemed to be skinnier than before they had left home. And now... this.

_BLEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEERGH._

Even if the crew didn't suspect a thing by this time (and lieutenant was sure most of them did), now even the stupidest of them, Taurus would notice that something's off. Because Layla Star didn't just throw up in some weak storm.

Sure, she had been nauseous sometimes when the waves were... extreme. Everyone had. But she survived through much worse winds than now.

She lifted herself, not wanting to fall off the side of the ship, and spited in the ocean.

"Must've had something bad... Watch out for those eggs!" she yelled, and began commanding again. The storm wasn't that bad, and they've had experienced crew, so she didn't really have to – but Caprico knew that she was doing it to keep them calm about her state. She was well aware of how the morale would fall if she'd be weak.

Still, her skin was slightly green, and Caprico saw that she was on the edge. He began yelling commands himself. "You go rest, those eggs didn't do you any good, that's possibly food poisoning! Not getting them on this deck ever again!" he tried to outshout the loud wind, for all the pirates to hear him as well as herself. Layla nodded, grateful that he went with her bluff.

He had the same eggs she had eaten in the morning after all.

The storm didn't seem to go away; in fact, it was slowly intensifying. Soon, the crew began to feel nervous.

Without Layla it'd be hard, Caprico sighed at the thought. He'd have to manage this whole mess by himself...

* * *

It was hours already, and the situation got really bad. Layla slept; he did not want to wake her up as it'd mess the whole crew. Her state was even worse than the storm. He yelled commands, the sailors were in chaos, they were scared, tired, and did not know what to do. They've never faced a storm that bad.

And then, something's happened. Awkwardly, all his nervousness dissolved in the air. He looked around; the crew members seemed to calm down, too, and do their duties perfectly fine without him yelling at them. His head felt a bit dizzy, and he smiled; it was such a pleasant song to hear...

_Upon one summer's morning,_  
_I carefully did stray,_  
_Down by the Walls of Wapping,_  
_where I met a sailor gay,_

The song had calmed them all. The ocean seemed to calm down a little, too, though the wind still was strong and the waves were high. The island slowly appeared before them, inviting them to stop there and wait. The singing voice was so calming, so warm...

_Conversing with a youngng lass,_  
_who seem'd to be in pain,_  
_Saying, William, when you go,_  
_I fear you'll ne'er return again._

"DUMP THE ANCHOR!" He yelled as they reached the right place for the ship to stay.

Layla snapped the door of her cabin open, seconds after the whole ship stopped and woke her from her nap. First thing, she vomited again over the broadside. Second, she snapped out of it, and began to yell. "WHAT THE HELL IS WRONG WITH YOU, YOU IDIOTS?! WHO'S ANCHORING THE BOAT IN THE STORM?!"

And her eyes shot wide open, when she had heard the song.

_My heart is pierced by Cupid,_  
_I disdain all glittering gold,_  
_There is nothing can console me_  
_but my jolly sailor bold._

"Oh fuck. YOU IDIOOTS!" She began to curse, yell, do everything she could think of and was loud. She tried to drown out the singing, but it was too late.

The sailors began to throw themselves in the water, and she desperately did the same.

She was a woman, the siren wouldn't get her. And, she swore to the King of the Sea, this bitch wouldn't get her crew either. Or she wouldn't be named Layla Star.

What was weird, the song was coming from the island, not the sea. Usually the mermaids would be on the open sea, or rocky sandbanks, definitely not islands...

_His hair it hangs in ringlets,_  
_his eyes as black as coal,_  
_My happiness attend him_  
_wherever he may go,_

She followed her crew, trying to slap them, hold them, yell at them, do anything; nothing worked. They all, zombie-like, went to the depths of the forest. They walked, and walked, and the voice grew louder. Finally, they stopped, and Layla saw the spring.

It wasn't big, nor was it looking deep; but she knew it was. It had to be.

The sailors circled the water, calmly getting closer.

_From Tower Hill to Blackwall,_  
_I'll wander, weep and moan,_  
_All for my jolly sailor,_  
_until he sails home._

Oh no, that wouldn't happen. Not when she was around.

She pushed Caprico away, dived in the water, and the song stopped immediately.

Lieutenant snapped out of the trance first. Looking at the water, he knew what had happened immediately.

Thunderbolt hit the tree near them.

"FUCK! LAYLA!"

This seemed to work on the rest of the crew. All of them knew what had happened well. They screwed up, and were lured by mermaid. And she jumped in to save them.

Cancer wanted to jump in after his captain, but Caprico caught him.

"Stop it right now!"

"Get off me, you son of a bitch! I need to help her-"

"AND WHAT WILL YOU DO AGAINST A SIREN, YOU IDIOT?! NOBODY JUMP IN THIS SPRING, OR I'LL SHOOT YOU!" Caprico yelled, getting his gun ready. It would be hopeless, and he didn't mean to lose any one of them. "I'll go. I'm the one responsible for this."

"And what will YOU do?" Cancer snapped. Caprico shrugged.

He didn't know.

"No, we're all staying here. No one moves. No one. The mermaids like women. They hate men. It could kill her if we'd jump in. She has a chance when she's alone."

Scorpio stood out. He might not be the lieutenant, but he knew what to do with mermaids. He lived through three attacks of the damn creatures. "We have to believe in her."

The storm was slowly dying out. They sat around the spring, praying to the King of the Sea to spare their captain.

Seconds passed, forming minutes, cumulating to hours. Storm had ended, and the clouds dispelled. Sunlight graced the trees and the surface of water, its reflexes dancing on their faces, and the silence replaced once loudly raging storm. If it wasn't for birds, and slight wind that was slowly shifting the branches, there would be no sound.

They stared at the water, getting more and more anxious with every passing moment.

It was way too long.

"Hey... What will we-"

As some deck hand began to speak, losing hope, the water started waving and foam up. Blonde hair emerged, then whole head, and rest of her body. She spit the water out, and her crew pulled her out. She coughed. She was soaked wet, and when she looked at Caprico, who was screaming, among the others, relieved she's okay, she looked bewildered and terrified, holding her stomach with both hands. She spit more of the liquid out, and with rough voice, she ordered. "Take me home".

Everyone fell dead silent, her coughing out and spiting the water around being the only voice besides the slow, warm wind. They stared at her in disbelief; Cancer was first to speak out.

"But, Makarov will be there by this time..." he started. Layla hated Macao, everyone knew that. She hissed.

"I don't care, take me home. I'll handle Macao. Fuck, I'll handle everything there. I'm not getting on this fucking again ship after you drop me."

They weren't happy to oblige, but eventually, they did.

* * *

Love and Lucky bar was filled with pirates again. This time though, it was Fairy Tail crew. They were even louder than Starry King's, but Jude didn't seem to care. He'd have to get used to it, he'll inherit the pub soon - the owner fell ill, and as he had no family, he said that if Jude buried him and got him tombstone, he'd give the place to him.

It was so loud inside, and the storm was crying outside, they didn't stand a chance to hear the loud people on the streets.

So, when the door sprung open, and the blonde woman appeared in the frame, her – slightly fatter? - figure basking in lightning, everyone fell dead silent and stared at her with shock.

"Find yourself a different face, Conbolt, or you'll never get laid!"

Makarov blinked, woken up from the trance.

"Layla?"

"YOU FAT COW, WHAT DID YOU SAY?!" Macao snapped, interrupting his captain and standing up.

"YOU DID NOT JUST CALL ME FAT, YOU SON OF A BITCH!" Layla went in, and the rest of her crew followed.

"Yes I did! How many did you put on?!" He snickered at her, and she slapped him in the face.

It was rather playful slap, he knew that, but he wouldn't let it pass. He was about to give her back, but his hand was stopped by Caprico and Scorpio, as they caught him by his arms.

"You're not touching her now. Sorry lad" Caprico looked apologetic, and Macau stared at him, stunned. They've never, ever stopped him from hitting her. They knew that she'd only hit them, too. It was wrong, something was off-

"What's wrong, Layla?" He stood straight. The air somehow felt tense - he'd always call her by surname, and not her Christian name.

Shit, he hated her, but he knew her since they were, like, THREE. He'd want to keep his enemy safe, who else would he argue with?

She only smiled at him, and turned to the other captain in the pub. "Hey there, Makarov, long time no see!" She beamed, and hugged her friend. He hugged her back, and smiled, too. The rest of crews began their greetings - they were old friends, and they didn't get to see each other much often.

"What's so important so you risk arguing with our Macao, my dear Layla?" Makarov asked the girl, smiling. She patted her belly, and glanced over the bar, to see the bartender at his usual place, now staring at her as the rest of people there. But he was different than them. His look, full of admiration, but also a bit of fear, caused her to blush - not that anyone noticed. She never blushed crimson, just light pink, complimenting her cheeks so ladylike you'd never guess she was a pirate, the captain of them on top of it. She spoke, her eyes still linked with Jude's.

"Well, I've got a special gift from someone, and I need to take care of it. And you," she turned her head and faced Makarov again, before continuing "you, my dear friend, shall take care of the rest of my crew while I do so. I won't let them go without a decent captain after what had happened lately. I won't hand them off to mermaids, and you're the only captain beside me who can resist them."

Dead silence fell upon the pub once again at her statement.

* * *

_Basicaly - say goodbye to Layla and her crew, and brace yourselves - Summer's comming :D Yeah, we'll skip a bit in next chapter. A big bit, to be honest. No worries - everything will be explained. Just later._

_I wonder if when I'll write big bit more into the story, I should update two times a week. Uhh, depends on your feedback as well, as it keeps me motivated (and Stephy's amount of time plays its big part, but still)._

_By the way - do me a big favor and check poll on my profile, just so I know if I should write a thing or two, it'd be greatly appreciated!_

_Okay, done rambling, gonna get my beauty sleep and hit the test tomorrow morning (it's 1 A.M. but I don't care, okay, I needed to update this XD). Wish me luck, sweet peas!_


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